On January 8, 1996, the Michigan Jobs Commission (MJC) issued a concise but
controversial "Framework for Electric and Gas Utility Reform." 17
In the report, the MJC argued that power rates for Michigans industrial and
commercial businesses must fall if the economic competitiveness of the state is to be
sustained well into the future.

The MJC report contained six important near-term recommendations as well as three
additional immediate and long-term recommendations. Near-term recommendations were as
follows:

(1) Direct retail access to power generators for new industrial and commercial
purchases;